Mercury Detection, Analysis & Speciation

Providing specialist services to the oil and gas industry to help detect and analyze mercury accurately.

Mercury poses a major hazard when it forms amalgams with metals, particularly aluminum, which can lead to Liquid Metal Embrittlement (LME) and catastrophic failures. From a commercial point of view, products with higher mercury levels are deemed to be poorer quality, command a lower price and are even banned in certain markets.

Mercury can damage pipeline welds, cryogenic components, aluminum heat exchangers and hydrogenation catalysts, as well as posing environmental and health hazards. Failure of these components can lead to plant shutdown, with severe economic implications, or, in extreme cases, uncontrolled loss of containment or complete plant failure.

Emergency remediation is always expensive and economically damaging to the plant operator. We provide mercury detection, analysis and speciation services to those at special risk.

Why choose mercury detection, analysis and speciation from SGS?

We enable you to:

• Minimize risk to equipment
• Improve process up-time and limit risk to manageable levels
• Ensure lower mercury concentrations to help maintain asset integrity and product quality
• Lower maintenance costs
• Reduce occupational health risks for your staff
• Reduce the impact of emissions on the environment

Our mercury-detection services include consultancy, sampling and lab analysis, and desk ad field reviews.

Consultancy

Our consultancy services include:

• Determination of mercury in hydrocarbon samples
• Completion of onsite mercury surveys
• Identifying areas of potential mercury contamination
• Areas of mercury loss
• Monitoring efficiency of mercury removal units (MRUs)
• Process up-time optimization
• Analysis of all types of environmental samples
• Determination of mercury in produced water
• RoHS analysis
• Third-party verification and testing
• Design of mercury monitoring programs

Sampling and Lab Analysis

We offer sampling and lab analysis solutions for various sample types of fluids including natural gas, LPG, LNG, naptha, condensate and crude oil. Capabilities include:

• Gold coated substrate or Adsoquick filled cartridges used for gaseous mercury pre-concentration
• Analytical instrumentation compliant to ASTM D5954, ASTM D6350, and ISO 6978-2 international standards
• Customized sampling solutions which can include a pressure let-down device (PLD), mini-separator, or by-pass flow apparatus
• Minimal time window between sampling and analysis

Desk and Field Reviews

We provide a baseline study to determine existing mercury levels at critical points of your process, identifying potential areas of mercury-induced corrosion, occupational health issues and possible mercury releases into the environment. We then advise you on the most appropriate course of remedial action, keeping your process running efficiently and helping to maximize the value of your products, while providing ongoing technical support for operators.

Why SGS?

Our specialized teams of analysts, based in Europe and the Far East, have over 20 years’ experience of mercury measurement and mercury analysis. Using state-of-the-art instrumentation, we have the experience to help with any application you may have, either on or off site.